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FRIESEN: QBs or not QBs? Bombers unsure

Blue Bombers general manager Kyle Walters had lots to say during media availability at Investors Group Field yesterday.
Kevin King/Winnipeg Sun

Paul Friesen

Published: May 14, 2019 - 6:41 AM

It appears CFL labour unrest will begin to touch the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Wednesday.

That’s the day Bombers rookies are to report for the start of their training camps.

Rookies aren’t part of the players union yet, so they’ll show up as scheduled, but all signs point to a no-show by veteran quarterbacks Matt Nichols, Chris Streveler and Bryan Bennett.

The rookie workouts, set for Wednesday to Friday, generally include the team’s veteran passers, although it is optional for them.

Bombers GM Kyle Walters said on Monday he had no indication his experienced quarterbacks planned to suit up.

“I’m not sure,” Walters said during a conference call with reporters. “We’ll wait and see what happens. We’re planning as if it’s a normal year, full speed ahead. And if Wednesday comes and there are some slight variances to the plan then we’ll adjust on the fly.”

There are a few reasons to believe the veterans won’t show, not the least of which is the recent directive from the CFL Players Association for vets not to report to training camp without a new deal in place, at least in provinces where labour laws allow it.

Manitoba is one of those.

Another: players are more united than they’ve ever been, Nichols as visible as anyone in his CFLPA T-shirt last fall.

Finally, there was word late last week of a likely Monday media availability with Nichols, but that got the kibosh.

If there’s no deal, the Bombers are likely to take the field Wednesday with two rookies handling all the offensive plays: 24-year-old Fordham University product Kevin Anderson, an invitee from the free-agent camp in Florida, and Canadian Sawyer Buettner from the University of Ottawa, mandated to attend Winnipeg’s camp through the CFL/U-Sports internship program.

That’s too much work for two young arms, especially given the Bombers’ need to improve at receiver.

The Bombers seem to agree. Late Monday came word they’ve got a third pivot on the way, in Sean McGuire, a Western Illinois product who’s just 23.

“Can’t wait to start this next chapter of my life in Winnipeg! Let’s get to work,” McGuire (@JohnnyMac_18) posted on Twitter.

“Nothing will be compromised,” Walters insisted. “If the CBA is not settled, we’ll have no issue with arms.”

The rookie portion of training camp allows draft picks and others new to the CFL to get a jump on the veteran-laden main camp, which opens on the weekend.

It’s hard to imagine any new receivers making an impression without an actual CFL passer getting them the ball.

“The ultimate goal is to give these guys the best opportunity to compete for jobs,” Walters said. “So it’s a couple extra days of learning for them and then just to be able to get comfortable with their surroundings before the vets show up and the real competition begins.”

If the real competition begins.

Saturday is the next red-letter day in a process that’s looked more like a standoff than a negotiation, with the two sides hurling threats at each other instead of exchanging meaningful proposals. Threats that are about to come home to roost.

Another three days of talks are scheduled to wrap up in Toronto on Tuesday, with no outward sign of progress.

Their current agreement, signed with plenty of disgruntlement on the players’ side five years ago, expires on Saturday.

At this point, it’s probably not a matter of whether or not camps will be shortened, but how much they’ll be shortened.

Shorter camps will hurt the game, as it’s already hard for players to make an impression and for coaches to project how good rookies could be, especially those getting their first taste of three-down football.

It’s conceivable the players cave again when faced with missing their first paycheques. After an off-season of no or little income, this is their time to eat.

But this showdown feels different than the last one, from the heavy hitter the players hired to lead them (noted negotiator Bryan Ramsay) to the solidarity they’ve been showing as far back as last season and again with a recent 97% strike vote.

They want long-term health coverage and a bigger piece of a pie commissioner Randy Ambrosie is suggesting could double in size.

The league’s first strike since the 1970s feels just around the corner, owners and operators on one side, players on the other – with GM’s and coaches caught in the middle.

“I’ve joked around here that I’m generally a pessimistic type of person,” Walters said. “But I am optimistic at this time of the year with the CBA and I am again this time. It’s full-speed ahead with the task at hand, which is training camp and I’m hoping we get the call in the next, whenever it is, and everything is good to go. And until told otherwise that’s what I’m believing.”